Freshman Faces: Adonai Mitchell
One of the biggest winners of the offseason for Georgia was freshman wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, who made a name for himself in place of several injured receivers.
Wide receiver George Pickens tore his ACL during spring practice in non-contact drills. The Bulldogs then had to sort through the depth at the bottom of their roster to find a replacement for Pickens.
While Mitchell will not totally replace Pickens this year, he proved himself to the coaching staff and was one of the biggest surprises of the offseason.
During the spring game, quarterback JT Daniels targeted Mitchell early and often and he often came through. He ended the day with seven catches for 105 yards and hauled in a touchdown ahead of halftime.
Mitchell spent his final formative years in Antioch, Tenn., where he played football at Cane Ridge High School after having grown up in Houston, Tex. He committed to the Bulldogs the summer heading into his senior season and was enrolled early.
He was committed to Ole Miss for two short months before ultimately flipping to Georgia. Mitchell praised the staff for their continued involvement in his recruitment and said they were one of the only schools that kept in communication after he committed.
Mitchell was not considered a marquee member of this class. Many cast him aside and said that he needed years of development before he could make an impact.
As it turns out, Mitchell can play SEC football now if he absolutely has to. He has exceptional body control, is a solid route-runner and tracks the football very well.
In the scrimmage, he had a few opportunities to make plays early and came away empty-handed. He didn't let that affect the rest of his game, though, and he made those same plays look routine later in the game.
Following the scrimmage, head coach Kirby Smart praised Mitchell and said that he was impressed with Mitchell's approach to the game:
"Yeah, I thought Adonai competed really well. He’s a competitor; he makes plays down the field. For a guy that just enrolled, that just got here; he did a good job."
Mitchell will play the X-receiver spot moving forward. Since wideouts Arik Gilbert and Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint will likely be in front of him, he won't be a starter. However, Mitchell proved that he could make an impact and be a key receiver in a solid rotation moving forward in his career.
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